Things are going pretty well for SEGA at the moment. Its games are selling better and better and the popularity of its licenses is growing around the world. Faced with these successes, and boosted by the results obtained by Sonic, le Film, SEGA feels growing wings. And obviously, the Japanese publisher is not lacking in ambition.
SEGA aims to be a “Video game marvel. “ This is in any case what said Shuji Utsumi, the co-director of operations of the Japanese publisher. Marvel’s immense popularity and multimedia ubiquity inspires and makes people envious. These statements from the SEGA spawner are proof of this.
The Japanese publisher believes that its licenses have the potential to allow it to reach new heights. Shuji Utsumi spoke about this during an interview with the Japanese site Toyo Keizai Online. Unsurprisingly, SEGA intends to rely in particular on one of its licenses to achieve its ambitions.
Sonic, a video game, but above all a locomotive for SEGA
Asked about the fact that the development of the Sonic license does not necessarily involve new video games. Shuji Utsumi explains that Sonic will be at the heart of the different media revival activities of SEGA’s licenses. And according to him, the current context combined with the licenses available to SEGA make it possible to dare a comparison with Marvel:
Marvel, for example, is perpetually renewing Spider-Man while retaining the Spider-Man name. And other non-Spider-Man products have the Marvel twist as well. SEGA can be a Marvel of the video game industry.
The video game ecosystem is currently changing. Various IT companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon and Netflix are interested in games. Among the latter, the demand for licenses is very strong. And on the side of channels or services that target the family audience, Sonic could be a very effective license.
A hedgehog who sees himself as big as Thanos
Over the past three years, SEGA has seen sales of its games explode. And over the next three years, it plans to continue growing the popularity of several of its key licenses. Among the latter are therefore Sonic but also Yakuza, Persona or Total War. SEGA wants to turn its most famous licenses into world-class brands.
And as we told you yesterday, SEGA also wants to use its older major licenses. As a reminder, SEGA is currently working on a new Sonic film as well as an animated series for Netflix. In parallel to that, a Shenmue anime is also in preparation. A new Yakuza film was also announced but this project has not been talked about for a long time. It remains to be seen whether this strategy will allow SEGA to be seriously considered as a “Marvel video game. “
What do you think of these statements from Shuji Utsumi? Do you think that SEGA has what it takes to become a “video game Marvel”? What licenses do you think would allow it to achieve this objective? Give us your opinion in the comments below.